AUCKLAND CITY HERITAGE WALKS > AUCKLAND S ORIGINAL SHORELINE

AUCKLAND CITY HERITAGE WALKS > AUCKLAND S ORIGINAL SHORELINE

1 AUCKLAND CITY HERITAGE WALKS AUCKLAND S ORIGINAL SHORELINE Map showing the progressive changes to the Auckland shoreline. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 4-8477. THIS WALK TAKES APPROXIMATELY 3 HOURS. THE GUIDE IS WRITTEN FROM WEST TO EAST, BUT OF COURSE MAY BE DONE IN THE OTHER DIRECTION. The pamphlet is published by Auckland City with assistance from Ngati Paoa and Ngati Whatua. The text was prepared by Dr Nerida Campbell and the introduction by Lisa Truttman. Unless otherwise indicated, illustrations are from Auckland Public Library. AUCKLAND S ORIGINAL SHORELINE > Official Bay: Point Britomart from the east showing Dangar s flour mill in Official Bay, 1865. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 7-A527.

AUCKLAND S ORIGINAL SHORELINE > 3 The original shoreline in Auckland has been changed dramatically by reclamation works in the 19th to early 20th centuries, the development of rail connections, and the construction of the Harbour Bridge and motorway in 1950s and 60s. The marinas and commercial wharves, which now stretch from Westhaven through to Judge s Bay, are very different from the foreshore sighted by the first settlers to Auckland. Tāmaki Herenga Waka Tāmaki the Destination of Voyagers is an ancient name for the Auckland Isthmus. This narrow piece of land between the Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea was known well by the great Polynesian navigators who settled Aotearoa a thousand years ago. Waka arriving from the Pacific Islands with new seed stocks and migrants sought the narrowest part of the isthmus at Otāhuhu, a mere 800m portage between our two great oceans. Later voyagers found Tāmaki heavily populated with some marrying into local communities while others continued south in search of new lands. With excellent gardening soils, fish stocks and natural fortifications the volcanic cones, Tāmaki became and still is today, the centre of the largest Maori civilisation in the world. The foreshore served identical purposes for both Maori and later European settlers: closeness to the bounty of the sea, and supplies for communities, a means of travel in an era where roads were either non-existent or extremely poor, while the headlands served as defensive points. There were a number of Maori pa sites along the original foreshore in central Auckland including Oka at Shelly Beach and Point Erin Park, Te Tou at Point Fisher, Te Ngahuwera close to where the Customshouse now stands, and Te Rerenga-oraiti on what was Point Britomart. In 1840 Lieutenant Governor William Hobson selected Auckland as the new site of the capital city, relocating it from Kororareka or Russell in the Bay of Islands. Surveyor-General, Felton Mathew, narrowed the preferred site down to Horotiu Bay (at the bottom of present day Queen Street), principally as this area was the best place for transferring both goods and settlers from ship to shore. Ngati Whatua leader, Te Kawau gifted 3000 acres of land including Auckland s CBD to Governor Hobson enabling the establishment of the city. The British flag was unfurled on 16th September 1840 on the headland of Point Britomart, the first settlers and government officials arrived in 1841 and Auckland s shoreline began to be transformed. The European names of the headlands and bays along this foreshore reflect the pattern of settlement Horotiu Bay, at the bottom of present day Queen Street, was dubbed Commercial Bay, as this was the business centre for the young capital. It offered flat, wide beach areas and mudflats. Shortland Street was the early commercial focus, but as Commercial bay was filled in and more streets formed that focus shifted to Queen Street. Further east, Official Bay on the other side of Point Britomart was where government officers first pitched their tents. Mechanic s Bay was home to the first workmen ( mechanics ) who built the city. The first reclamation of Auckland s early foreshore was the formation of Fore Street (later Fort Street) from the shoreline of Commercial Bay, completed by 1850. Providing wharves was an early priority for the new settlement. The Auckland Provincial Council undertook to construct Wynyard Pier between Official and Mechanic s Bays before the end of 1851, and commenced work on the first Queen Street Wharf in 1852. By 1859 reclamation work was in progress between Fort and Customs Streets. By 1870 the reclamation of Commercial Bay reached as far as Customs Street East and in the 1880s Quay Street was formed. In 1871 the Auckland Harbour Board was formed which would oversee further dramatic changes to the original line of the foreshore. Once the British garrison had departed Fort Britomart, on Point Britomart headland in 1870, the new Harbour Board began in earnest to cut away the point to enable a rail connection out of Auckland. The excavated headland was used as fill for reclamations in Freeman s, Commercial, Official and Mechanics Bays between 1872 to 1886. Major areas of recalamation occurred in Freeman s Bay from 1886-1917, Mechanic s Bay from 1872-1915, and St George s Bay from 1904-1916. Many of Auckland s early industries from the 19th century vanished as the reclamations spread out and the bays ceased to exist. Freeman s and Mechanic s Bays were the sites of sawmills, and both bays were often filled with logs. Brickfield Bay, aside from being the home for early brickyards serving the new city, was also the site for the first gas works. The building of the approaches to the Auckland Harbour Bridge in the late 1950s sealed the fate of the thriving ship building industry in St Mary s Bay, as well as rowing regattas held by the West End Rowing Club. Of the foreshore from Pt Erin to Parnell, only Judge s Bay retains its original contours. The alteration of Auckland s shoreline after 1840 until present day; from sandy beaches, rocky cliffs and mudflats to modern wharves for passengers and container traffic illustrates the change from colonial port to modern city. In tracing the line of the original foreshore we can see the history of the development of Auckland.

AUCKLAND CITY HERITAGE WALKS AUCKLAND S ORIGINAL SHORELINE 1 Pt Erin OKā 2 St Mary s Bay Ko Takere Haere (Western End) 3 St Mary s Bay (Eastern End) 4 Pt Fisher Acheron Pt Te To 5 Freeman s Bay Waiatarau (Western End) 6 Freeman s Bay Waiatarau (Eastern End) 7 Freeman s Bay Waiatarau (Drake Street) 8 Freeman s Bay Waikokota 9 Fanshawe Street Te Pane Iriiri 10 Brickfield Bay 11 Smale s Point Pt Stanley Ngauwera 12 Swanson Street 13 Lower Queen Street 14 Fort/Gore Streets 1 POINT ERIN HAMER BRIGHAM CURRAN CLARENCE ISLINGTON PROVOST ST SHELLY BEACH ROAD EMMETT SHELLY BEACH ROAD JERVOIS ROAD POMPALLIER TERRACE CLARENCE STRE BLAKE ST PROSFORD ST SHEEHAN ST WESTHAVEN DRIVE AMIRIA ST REDMOND HACKETT COWAN PONSONBY TERRACE RING TERRACE PONSONBY RD TOLE ST MARYS ROAD MELFORD ST MARYS ROAD COLLEGE HILL PONSONBY RO 2 POINT FISHER LONDON DUNEDIN ST DUBLIN FRANCIS DE SALES GREEN ST WOOD ST WESTHAVEN DRIVE ST NEW COLLEGE HILL FREEMAN S BAY HARBOUR ST WAITEMATA ST HARGREAVES COLLEGE HILL RUNNELL ST ENGLAND ST SPRING ST 3 SCOTLAND ST IRELAND ST FRANKLIN ROAD BEAUMONT WESTHAVEN DRIVE 5 NAPIER JELLICOE ST BEAUMONT JELLICOE MADDEN PAKENHAM GAUNT FANSHAWE DALDY VICTORIA WEST URN WELD ST 4 UNION DALDY ST DRAKE CENTRE ST 6 7 HALSEY HALSEY SALE COOK SAM WRIGLEY ST UNION VIADUCT HARBOUR FANSHAWE HARDINGE PAKENHAM VICTORIA WEST 8 9 COOK GRAHAM ST GRAHAM ST NELSON COOK BRICKFIELD BAY FANSHAWE STURDEE WELLESLEY WEST T PACIFIC PL CUSTOMS W KINGSTON ST FEDERAL ST LOWER HOBSON ST WOLFE ST ALBERT ALBERT ELLIOTT T AS ST 10 HOBSON HOBSON VICTORIA WEST FEDERAL ST MAYORAL WYNDHAM STRE DRIVE 11 DARB

BEACH ROAD Mobilty parking available in the Downtown car park. 16 Mobility toilets available in the Downtown Shopping Centre and in the Britomart precinct on Tyler Street, opposite the Events Centre. Parts of this walk at either end are quite steep. The central section between Beaumont Street and the base of The Strand in Parnell is relatively level. 1840 Mean High Water Mark, plotted by Aranne Donald, Auckland City Heritage Division 1992, from original sources. 15 Britomart Place 16 Pt Britomart 17 Official Bay Wynyard Pier 18 Mechanic s Bay Te Toangaroa 19 Constitution Hill Te Reuroa 20 Augustus Terrace 21 The Strand 22 St George s Bay Te Wai o Taikehu 23 Campbell s Point 24 Judge s Bay 25 Parnell Baths POINT STANLEY EST LOWER ALBERT ST MILLS LANE 12 ET Y ST MILLS LANE QUEEN ST QUEEN LORNE RUTLAND ST LORN 13 QUAY CUSTOMS EAST KITCHENER FORT COMMERCE ST JEAN BATTEN PLACE SHORTLAND HIGH WELLESLEY S GORE ST FREYBERG PL CHANCERY ST COURTHOUSE LN 14 KITCHENER ST BOWEN AVENUE MECHANIC S BAY COMMERCIAL BAY 15 EMILY PL ALFRED BRITOMART PL EMILY PL EMILY PL SHORTLAND ST PRINCES OFFICIAL BAY POINT BRITOMART SHORT ST EDEN CRES WATERLOO QUADRANT GRAFTON 16 SYMONDS BEACH TINLEY ANZAC AVENUE WYNYARD TINLEY PARLIAMENT ST ANZAC AVENUE ALTEN 17 ROAD ROAD PLUMER ST CHURCHILL ST TAPORA ST MAHUHU 19 TOOLEY 18 QUAY CRES TE TAOU CRES RONAYNE PARNELL RISE THE STRAND 20 PARNELL ROAD BEDFORD ST HEATHER THE STRAND MARSTON ST AUGUSTUS CRACROFT ST POINT DUNLOP POINT BARNABAS FOX ST YORK TERRACE PARNELL THE STRAND 21 BRADFORD CHURTON GARFIELD FARNHAM ST THE ST GEORGE S BAY ST GEORGES BAY RD STRAND KENWYN ST WATT ST FARADAY ST 22 BALFOUR ROAD CLEVELAND ROAD TAMAKI DRIVE GLADSTONE ROAD STANWELL ST SOLENT SUNDERLAND ST 23 JUDGES BAY G JUDGE S BAY ROAD 24 JUDGES BAY RD BRIDGEWATER ROTA PLACE CANTERBURY PL ROAD AWATEA AVENUE JUD

5 > 1. AUCKLAND S ORIGINAL SHORELINE WALK PARK AT THE PT ERIN BATHS. WALK TO THE LEFT OF THE COMPLEX THEN TURN RIGHT DOWN THE CLIFF. THIS GRASS AREA WAS RECLAIMED FOR THE BRIDGE APPROACH IN THE 1950S. WALK TO THE RIGHT UNDER THE VIADUCT. THE UNDULATING SHORE LINE IS MARKED BY MANY OF THE OLD POHUTAKAWAS ON THE CLIFF. An early view of Shortland Street with Commercial Bay in the foreground. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 624. Pt Erin Park, Watchman Island in distance, 1919. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES,7-A291. 1. PT ERIN - OKĀ Okā is an ancient pā (fortified village) also called Te Koraenga ( the headland). Together with Te Onewa pā across the Waitematā River, Okā provided a base for summer fishing in the famed shark fishing grounds in the upper Waitemata harbour. The legendary taniwha and guardian of the Hauraki people, Ureia, roamed the gulf and frequented Pt Erin to scratch his back against the cliff and reef. The reason for the name Erin is unknown Erin is another name for Ireland. In this vicinity were the Shelly Beach salt water baths and small boatyards, all of which have disappeared as a result of the reclamation for the Harbour Bridge and motorway. Point Erin & Shelley Beach, 1913 SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 35-R62.

7 Although the grassy reserve continues beyond St Mary s Bay it is not possible to pass HMNZ Ngapona. Turn up St Mary s Bay Road. 3. 2. St Mary s Bay, 1898. Showing the West End Rowing Club in the distance. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES,7-A291. St Mary s Bay, 1914 SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES 1-W811 2. ST MARY S BAY KO TAKERE HAERE (WESTERN END) The former beach at St Mary s Bay was known as Ko Takere Haere or the split canoe hull. The name commemorates an event where slaves who were hauling a waka onto shore accidentally caused it to slip on its skids cracking the hull. This was taken as a bad omen and the slaves were thus sacrificed for their indiscretion. The hinterland of this bay was named Mount St Mary by Bishop Pompallier, who purchased it for the Catholic Church in 1853. St Mary s Bay was the major hauling out area for boats moored on the western side of the city, and the home of the Ponsonby Cruising Club. A 1956 campaign by local residents who fought to keep the area tidal was defeated and St Mary s Bay was sacrificed to form the Harbour Bridge approaches. 3. ST MARY S BAY (EASTERN END) Te Papaku a Whai or Whai s Shoal is the Maori name for this area. The identity of Whai however has since been lost.this area lay beyond the city s western boundary (Franklin Road) and constituted the eastern end of the St Mary s Bay foreshore. An 1857 British Admiralty map shows New Street reaching down to the shoreline. St Mary s school for Maori Boys and a Seminary were built at the end of Waitemata Street on the point which divided Freeman s and St Mary s Bays. This point too was lost in the reclamation process. Walk up St. Mary s Bay Road, turn left onto London St. Here are some the old grand houses of St Mary s Bay. Turn right up New Street and then left on Waitemata St. At the end turn left down a lane to Jacob s ladder. These are steep steps. Alternatively continue up New St. which runs through land granted to Roman Catholic Bishop Pompallier in the 1850s. On the left is St Mary s school and convent and on the right the Bishop s Palace. Left down College Hill Road to the corner of Beaumont St.

9 4. 5. Freeman s Bay, 1860, Looking east from the bottom of College Hill. JOHN KINDER: AUCKLAND ART GALLERY, TOI O TAMAKI, PRESENTED BY MR H. A. KINDER, 1937. View from Acheron Point, 1878, looking east toward Freeman s Bay. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 4.1374. 4. PT FISHER ACHERON PT TE TŌ A headland pā called Te Tō ( To haul up a waka ) once occupied the eastern headland of Freeman s Bay above Beaumont Street. Te Tō was another of the many satellite fishing stations dotted along the inner Waitemata harbour. Te Tō and its strategic importance is still recited in speeches by Maori on marae in the Auckland today. The first European name of the point was Pt Fisher (after Acting Attorney General and Land Commissioner, Francis Fisher). It was later known as Acheron Point, after H.M.S. Acheron, a survey vessel which charted Auckland s Waitemata coastline between 1848 and 1851. A lane at the bottom of Jacob s Ladder leads to Beaumont St. turn right. The Auckland Gas Company s 1904 brick buildings have been converted into shops and offices. At the corner cross to the left. Under the viaduct is the Campbell s Free Kindergarten. Continue by the park or cross and walk through the Victoria Park Market. 5. FREEMAN S BAY WAIATARAU (WESTERN END) The Reflecting Waters is the Maori name for what was once a glistening bay but is now Victoria Park. A freshwater stream called Waikuta ( Waters of the reed ) once discharged into Waiatarau at about the foot of College Hill while the Tunamau ( to catch eels ) stream spilled into the bay at about Franklin Road. Both names indicate the abundant natural resources once found here. The origin of Freeman s is disputed it either referred to one of Governor Hobson s officials, James Stuart Freeman, or free settlers. 6. FREEMAN S BAY WAIATARAU (EASTERN END) On the old shoreline in this vicinity were numerous sawyers, boatbuilders and hotels, which disappeared during the western reclamation project carried out by the Auckland Harbour Board in the 1880s. A more modern Maori name for the area was Waipiro or stinking water, mocking the early drunken residents. The Birdcage (formerly Rob Roy Hotel) and Freeman s Hotels both remain. Freeman s Hotel dates from 1886, but there has been a hotel on this site since around 1860.

11 7. FREEMAN S BAY WAIATARAU (DRAKE ) Te Koranga ( the scaffolds ) is the Maori name for this area. Fish and shark would be hung and dried on scaffolds and processed over the summer months before being transported to base camps such as at Maungakiekie for the leaner winter months. The present day Drake Street runs along the former cliff line. Once this street was the western termination of Victoria Street. Drake Street was the mail centre for Freeman s Bay there was a twice daily collection from Slatterly s greengrocery. This waterfront area is redolent of the English navy. Streets here are named after Sir Francis Drake, Admirals Blake, Fanshawe, Halsey and Pakenham. Cross the street to Halsey St. The building of Millar Patterson 1903 still serves its original purpose as marine engineers and foundry. Turn right at Fanshawe Street. This road is on the old beach with the cliffs still to be seen. 9. 8. FREEMAN S BAY WAIKOKOTA Another name for the bay was Wai Kokota or the place where cockles could be harvested. This area forms the eastern end of Freemans Bay basin. At the foot of Wellesley Street West are the brick buildings and chimney of the Auckland City Destructor, built in 1905, and since converted to form the Victoria Park Markets. Parts of the original cliff line, and a large coastal pohutakawa tree, survive in the market complex. 8. Freeman s Bay. Customs St West, now Fanshawe Street, in the foreground in 1900. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES,M 1-W206. 9. FANSHAWE TE PANE IRIIRI Freeman s Bay. Fanshawe St (foreground), 1900, with St Patricks Church in right background. The Kauri Timber Company shown left foreground. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 1-W204. The Maori name for the land surrounding the junction of Halsey and Fanshawe streets is Te Paneiriiri, the head hung up. It apparently was the scene of a victory ceremony performed by the Ngati Poua. Two large timber companies (Leyland O Brien and the Kauri Timber Company) were located on the seaward side of Fanshawe Street. Tiny Dock Street, which had its own wharf, was situated between Hardinge Street and the eastern Freeman s Bay shoreline. The wharf was a casualty of the reclamation. At the end of WW2, Maori were encouraged to move to the city from rural areas. A converted war depot building on the corner of Halsey and Fanshawe Streets became the Maori Community Centre substituting as a marae and gathering place for the newly arrived Maori. Most famous were the dances and showbands that played there including such greats as Prince Tui Teka and Billy T James. Today the site is owned by local tribe Ngati Whatua. Cross Nelson St.

17 10. BRICKFIELD BAY 11. This tiny bay was situated below Hardinge Street at the foot of Wyndham Street, and was a mere indentation of the much larger Freeman s Bay. It marks the site of one of Auckland s earliest industries, brick making. At the foot of Nelson Street was a small wharf, where fishermen landed their catch. The Maori name is Te Hika a Rama. Rama lit a fire here to warm his grandchild. This was in a time of conflict and the fire inadvertently alerted his Ngati Whatua enemies across the harbour to his whereabouts whereupon he was attacked and killed. 10. Commercial Bay from Smale s Point, looking north east to the Queen Street wharf and the North Head, 1864. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 4-1167. 11. SMALE S POINT PT STANLEY NGAUWERA 10. Commercial Bay (reclaimed). Looking toward Ponsonby and Freeman s Bay from Quay Street West, 1904. Brickfield Bay has vanished under reclamation (on the site of the buildings featured upper left centre) SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND PUBLIC LIBRARY, 7-A245. Smale s Point separated Freeman s Bay from Commercial Bay, which was centred at the foot of Queen Street. In 1840 the point was named after Captain Owen Stanley, of H.M.S. Britomart. Shortly afterwards, a Captain David Smale bought a property on the point ( hauling goods up by windlass ) and the area became known as Smale s Point, until it was cut down in the 1880 s to allow Albert Street to extend into the wharf area. A pa - once stood on the old cliff line near the Customhouse corner of Albert Street and Customs Street East. Nga u wera means the burnt breasts though the origin of the name is not now known. Point Stanley was near the bottom of Hobson St. Crossing over Hobson Street look at one of the oldest business still in existence the shipchandlers Fosters built in 1906. Cross Albert St and pass the magnificent Customs House built in 1888. It has been restored and houses duty free shops. Turn right on Queen St.

19 12. SWANSON The high land here defines the inner limits of Commercial or Store Bay, the first area of European settlement in 1840. Until 1883 Swanson Street was known as West Queen Street. A Maori track. Te Tarapounamu, led up Swanson Street to a pa on the ridge, possibly Nga Wharau Tako. Mills Lane was named after Thornton, Smith and Firth s flour mill nearby. Josiah Clifton Firth (1826-1897) became a prominent businessman and landowner. 13. 12. Queen Street looking north from the vicinity of Wellesley Street to Lower Queen Street, 1843. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 4-688. 13. LOWER QUEEN Commercial Bay. The view from the present-day location of Mills Lane to Commercial Bay, 1843. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 4-1047 This portion of Queen Street is built on the first land to be reclaimed from the sea, in 1859. Fort Street (originally Fore Street) marks the original shoreline and the centre of Commercial Bay, which was chosen as the commercial hub of the new capital by Surveyor- General Felton Matthew, in 1841, and has remained so today. Nearby Shortland Crescent was the first main street in Auckland. Turn left into Shortland Street, and left into Jean Batten Place to Fort St. (Jean Batten was a New Zealand aviatrix), right onto Fort St. This area was the center of the merchant commerce where importers and exporters built wharehouses close to the wharves and the railway line. Many of these buildings are being refurbished. At the curve of Fort St is the white façade of the Northern Roller Mills once a landmark on the Auckland skyline.

21 14. FORT/GORE S 16. Fort Street led along the original shoreline. There were steps up the hill to the Britomart Barracks. The Maori name for this area is Te One Panea, beach of the heads in line. It is said the heads of slain enemies were stuck on posts from one end to the other of the foreshore. 14. Official Bay: Point Britomart from the east showing Dangar s flour mill in Official Bay, 1865. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 7-A527. Commercial Bay in 1844, with Shortland Street rising to St Pauls Church on the skyline with Fort Britomart to the left. Fort Street was later constructed along the foreshore of the bay. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES,7-A2779. 15. BRITOMART PLACE This is a comparatively recent place name, given to the street to the east of the Britomart transport terminal. The name was taken from the demolished Point Britomart. H.M.S. Britomart was a British brig which visited Auckland in the 1840 s. Nearby was the Metropolitan Church of St Paul (Anglican) at Emily Place. St Pauls was known as the soldier s church as it was attended by the regiments at nearby Fort Britomart and the Albert Barracks (Albert Park). 16. PT BRITOMART This site marks the end of Point Britomart, a headland which was known firstly as Flagstaff Hill, and then shortly afterwards, Pt. Britomart. Auckland s first European fort was established on the point on the site of an old pa, Te Rerenga-oraiti ( the leap of the survivors ) in 1840. The ancient name describes two similar incidents when attacking Ngati Whatua forces drove their foe off the end of the headland with only few surviving the leap into the Waitemata harbour below. The headland was demolished in the 1880 s and used as fill in nearby Official Bay. 16. Official Bay: Point Britomart from the east showing Dangar s flour mill in Official Bay, 1865. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 7-A527.

23 17. OFFICIAL BAY WYNYARD PIER 18. Te Hororoa ( the slipping away ) is a place in Official Bay. Prior to the 17th century invasion of Ngati Whatua part of the pā here slipped into the sea with a number of people perishing. This was taken as a bad omen foretelling the invasion from the north-west. Official Bay (locally known as Exclusion Bay) was named after the government officials who resided here. These officials were members of Hobson s Crown Colony government, established in Auckland in 1840. Wynyard Pier, a timber wharf, was erected in 1851, funded largely by private subscription. It was named after Colonel Robert H Wynyard who settled in the bay in Felton Mathew s old home. 17. Mechanic s Bay, 1843. Showing government mechanics (or workmen s) cottages in foreground. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 4-3367. 18. MECHANIC S BAY TE TOANGAROA Official Bay. Wynyard Pier remains (left and St Barnabas Point (distance), 1880 s. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 4-1027. Te Toangaroa ( the dragging of waka a long distance ) is the Maori name for the old bay here. The tide went out along way so if one missed the high tide it lead to an arduous and unwanted task to haul waka to the beach at present-day Beach Road. This site marks the location of the dwellings of the first mechanics or workmen who were employed by the government to build the first houses in the new capital. Here also were Auckland s first sawmills, boatyards, and a rope walk. Gradual reclamation, completed as late as the 1920s, provided the site for the Railway Station and container wharves. Continue along Beach Road. The 1930s Railway Station has recently been converted to student accommodation.

25 19. Walk up Parnell Road and cross to Augustus Terrace. 20. AUGUSTUS TERRACE This area, at the eastern end of the original Mechanic s Bay, overlooked a tidal inlet where boatbuilding was carried on. The Waipapa, a tidal creek meaning the waters of the flats, flowed down from the Parnell ridge. Augustus Terrace, formerly Selwyn Terrace, was named after Bishop George Augustus Selwyn. 20. Mechanic s Bay. Looking East in 1880 from the Supreme Court showing Mechanic s Bay, St Barnabas Pt, and Campbell s Point beyond Constitution Hill on the right. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES,W287. 19. CONSTITUTION HILL TE REUROA Auckland s first Parliament Buildings were located just over the brow of this hill, on land behind the extensions to the High Court. The hill is reached by an access way from the old shoreline below, and is flanked by Alten Road. Te Reuroa pa, the longer outer palisading stood on the Supreme Court site, and also extended to the foreshore. On Beach Road at the foot of Constitution Hill was a Maori Reserve. A Maori hostel built by Ngati Whatua was established here to house Maori traders who arrived from all over New Zealand. In 1848 Maori delivered 20,000 tons of potatoes, apples, peaches and wheat at this place. Mechanic s Bay, 1860s. Maori Hostel immediate foreground, Swan Hotel on right. Augustus Terrace leads over the ridge, with St Barnabas Point on the left. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 4-535. At the end take the walkway down the cliff beside the Dilworth Apartments.Turn right on The Strand. 21. THE STRAND This marks the original beachline. Pt Dunlop was the landward extremity, named after a British Naval Commander, Robert Dunlop, of H.M.S. Favorite. It was later renamed Barnabas Point, after St Barnabas Church which once stood here but was moved to Mt Eden. The point was cut back in the 1870s. 21. Waka at Te Toangaroa Mechanic s Bay by John Kinder circa 1865. AUCKLAND CITY GALLERY. St George s Bay, looking Southwest from Campbell s Point, 1912. The Dilworth Terrace houses in left background along cliffline, with the Strand below. base of the cliff. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES,1-W1508..

27 22. ST GEORGE S BAY TE WAI O TAIKEHU Taikehu is the ancestor for the ancient Ngai Tai tribe. Taikehu arrived from the pacific islands aboard the famed Tainui waka and named a number of places in the Auckland region including Nga Tuaira a Taikehu ( the dorsal fins of Taikehu ) being the 3 peaks of Rangitoto. This was originally known as Cooper s Bay, after the first Colonial Treasurer, George Cooper, then George s Bay, and finally St George s Bay. St George s Bay Road led down to the shoreline where remnants of the early cliff survive. The Maori name for the area is Waiataikehu or waiakehu, waters of Taikehu. St George s Bay was cut off from the sea in 1920 and then reclaimed. 22. 23. CAMPBELL S POINT This Point was named after John Logan Campbell (1817-1912) sometimes known as the Father of Auckland. He was one of the first settlers to purchase land in Auckland, and was Mayor of the City and a local Member of Parliament. His handsome house Kilbryde stood on the Point but was demolished in 1924. The Point itself was cut down in 1929, enabling the waterfront road to proceed and Gladstone Road to curve around directly into the Strand. Down to the little beach at Judge s Bay. 24. JUDGE S BAY In 1841 Judge Martin and Attorney General Swainson arrived in Auckland with houses in prefabricated sections. Swainson built on the west side and the Martins on the east of this bay. The little chapel of St. Stephen s built in 1857 is all that remains of this time. Known as Taurarua the two ropes it is thought that this name referred to the two administrators of British justice. 24. St George s Bay, 1912. Showing the former Farmer s Warehouse Building with reclaimed land in the foreground and right. Campbells Point is in the left foreground. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES, 1-W1507. Judges Bay in 1915 looking towards Campbell s Point with the first Parnell Baths in the foreground. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, AUCKLAND CITY LIBRARIES 1-W1341. If it is open, take a peak into the Saatchi & Saatchi Building to see the innovative re-use of a warehouse. Continue on the Strand, crossing St George s Bay Road and turn right Gladstone Road. Continue around the foreshore to Parnell Baths and over the walking bridge. From this vantage point the original shoreline of Orakei Basin Hobson Bay can be seen. From the Fred Ambler Lookout, walk up to Dove Myer Robinson Park. Here the trees recreate a scene that may have been seen by early Auckland citizens.

25. PARNELL BATHS The first salt water baths were built on the site in Judge s Bay in 1914 by Auckland City Council. Modifications and improvements were made from that time until the 1940s. Major redevelopment of the Baths was undertaken in the 1950s, to create a Lido atmosphere a glamorous seafront bathing resort. The design by the Auckland City Council s Architects Office was awarded a gold medal by the New Zealand Institute of Architects in 1958. The glass mosaic murals were designed by artist James Turkington, in collaboration with the architects. 25. Post card of the Parnell Baths in the 1950s. MATTHEWS AND MATTHEWS COLLECTION To return to Pt. Erin take Bus No 757 or 769 on Tamaki Drive to the Britomart Transport Centre. Then take Bus 005 at Customs St. West, stop D20, to Jervois Road, and walk down Curran St. Information at www.rideline.co.nz

www.aucklandcity.govt.nz info@hotcity.co.nz www.hotcity.co.nz Heritage walks in Central Auckland 1. Downtown 2. Midtown 3. Uptown 4.Original Foreshore 5. Princes St University Quarter